Passing by the booth of Carol Chiago Lujan who displayed masks and glass objects, some of which looked like “glass rugs”, I stopped and knew, we had found somebody exceptional that would be perfectly suited to turn a rug design into a glass object.

The question remained how to approach her, as neither of us was previously acquainted with her. Carol made the conversation that followed incredibly easy and comfortable, as she was immediately interested in the project and committed to pick a design and bring it to life in glass.

For those of you that don’t know Carols work yet, here is a bit of background: Carol is a clay and glass artists and comes from a long history of Navajo weavers from the Big Water clan. Therefore art and the creative process have always been an important part of her heritage. Her sculpted clay horses and masks are inspired by her Navajo heritage.  The clay masks are usually colorfully painted with acrylics and/or glazed and embellished with parrot feathers.  Her recent work includes fused glass art.  Her glass art incorporates traditional designs into fused glass art pieces including masks, bowls and platters. In addition to her art interests, Carol has a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of New Mexico.  She is professor emeritus at Arizona State University (ASU) and is pursuing her art interests full-time working in both New Mexico and Arizona.

Carol enjoys the creative process and continues to expand her knowledge about clay sculpting and glass fusing while incorporating tradition and culture into her pieces. Her inspiration continues to be founded on the beauty, strength, endurance, humor and sovereignty of American Indian nations and peoples.

If you are as anxious to see what Carol created for the Byting Willows exhibit as we are, then visit 1Spot Gallery in Phoenix between February 20th – April 17th 2015 and find out.